Grease (1978 film)
This is about '''the film.' For the stage musical, see Grease (musical).'' Grease is a 1978 movie musical based on the stage musical of the same name. Cast Singing roles *John Travolta - Danny Zuko *Olivia Newton-John - Sandra Olsson *Stockard Channing - Betty Rizzo *Jeff Conaway - Kenickie *Barry Pearl - Doody *Michael Tucci - Sonny LaTierri *Didi Conn - Putzie *Kelly Ward - Frenchy *Jamie Donnelly - Jan *Dinah Manoff - Marty Maraschino *Frankie Avalon - Teen Angel Non-singing roles *Eve Arden - Principal Greta McGee *Dody Goodman - Secretary Blanche Hodel *Sid Caesar - Coach Vince Calhoun Plot In the summer of 1958, Danny Zuko and vacationing Sandy Olsson met at the beach and fell in love. When the summer comes to an end, Sandy, who is going back to Australia, frets that they might never meet again, but Danny tells her that their love is "only the beginning", and they will stay friends. The film moves to the start of the new school year at Rydell High School. Danny, a greaser, is a member of the T-Birds, consisting of his best friend Kenickie, Doody, Sonny, and Putzie. The Pink Ladies, a sassy, popular clique of girls, also arrive, consisting of Rizzo, Frenchy, Marty, and Jan. After her parents unexpectedly decide to move from Australia, Sandy enrolls at Rydell and is befriended by Frenchy, who considers dropping out of high school to become a beautician by going to a beauty school. Unaware of each other's presence at Rydell, Danny and Sandy tell their curious groups the accounts of events during the pair's brief romance, without initially mentioning the other's name. Sandy's version emphasizes the romance of the affair, and the truth and purity, while Danny's version is more sexual. When Sandy finally tells everyone it was Danny Zuko, Rizzo arranges a surprise reunion for the two at a pep rally, where Sandy is cheering along with high-achiever and resident swot, Patty Simcox. At the rally, Sandy catches the eye of a muscly member of the football team. When Sandy and Danny are reunited, they are initially elated, but Danny soon slips back into his greaser attitude, which offends Sandy. At the same rally, Kenickie reveals his new car, a dilapidated used jalopy, and announces he has entered it into a "pinks" street race at Thunder Road. Frenchy invites Sandy to her house for a sleepover. Sandy vomits at trying her first cigarette, drinking a dessert wine, and getting her ears pierced by Frenchy. While she recovers in the bathroom, Rizzo makes fun of her innocent and virtuous nature. The T-Birds arrive in Kenickie's car, and Rizzo departs with Kenickie, leaving the other T-Birds stranded. Sandy laments over her feelings towards Danny, despite his earlier behavior. As Kenickie and Rizzo start making love, the condom Kenickie is using breaks. The two are also interrupted by Leo, leader of the T-Birds' rival gang, the Scorpions, and his tall and brash girlfriend Cha-Cha. The next day, the T-Birds are looking over Kenickie's car, and although they are initially skeptical of its potential, Danny and Kenickie explain the modifications they could add to make it a hot-rodding sex machine. In an attempt to impress Sandy, Danny approaches Coach Calhoun in an effort to become a high school athlete. Danny's pride and lack of experience lead to him picking fights with the jocks when he tries to play basketball, wrestling or baseball, so Calhoun suggests cross-country running, in which Danny excels. Danny's running proves to impress Sandy, prompting the two to reconcile for a date at the Frosty Palace; when the other greasers arrive, Danny and Sandy promptly leave in discomfort. Kenickie and a noticeably distressed Rizzo get into an argument and break up, while Putzie and Jan arrange to go to the dance. Left alone, Frenchy—who dropped out of Rydell to enroll in beauty school, only to quit when she turned her own hair bright pink—is visited by a guardian angel who advises her to return to Rydell. The school dance arrives, broadcast live on television and hosted by DJ Vince Fontaine, who flirts with Marty. Rizzo and Kenickie attempt to spite one another by bringing Leo and Cha-Cha as their dates, while Danny and Sandy arrive together. Danny and Sandy dance well and appear to be on their way to winning the competition, but a drunken Sonny pulls Sandy off the floor partway through. Cha-Cha joins Danny for the rest of the dance, and the two win. During the last dance, Putzie leads Sonny and Doody in a mooning of the national TV audience, which Principal McGee vows to put on their permanent records. Danny apologizes to Sandy and tries to make it up to her by taking her to a drive-in theater. She's unmoved by his pleas for forgiveness until he gives Sandy his ring, which she gleefully accepts. Moments later, Danny tries to aggressively make out with her, causing Sandy to angrily throw his ring at him and depart, leaving Danny distraught. Meanwhile, because she skipped a period, Rizzo quietly admits she may be pregnant to Marty, who in turn tells Sonny, and the rumor spreads like wildfire through the drive-in, reaching Kenickie just as Rizzo is walking past. He attempts to talk to Rizzo about it, telling her he doesn't run away from his mistakes. Rizzo tells him it was someone else's mistake, a response that angers Kenickie. At school the next day, word of Rizzo's pregnancy fears reaches Patty Simcox, who has spread the gossip to her clique and sneers at Rizzo as they walk by. A visibly hurt Rizzo, who thanks Sandy for her offer of help, sings to herself about how her sins are not as bad as they could be. On the day of the race, Kenickie asks Danny to be on standby in case he decides to back out. Moments before the race is set to begin, Kenickie suffers a concussion when he bends over to pick up a penny for good luck and Putzie opens the car door on Kenickie's head, and Danny takes the helm of the car. Leo and Danny run a tight race, with Leo attempting to shred Danny's tires with bladed hubcaps (in a sequence paying homage to Ben-Hur); Danny eventually wins when Leo skids out. Sandy watches from afar and concludes that she still loves Danny. She decides to change her attitude and image to impress him and asks Frenchy for help. On the last day of school, a sobbing Principal McGee and her equally nostalgic assistant Blanche, in a speech over the intercom, tell the students that they could be future leaders. The school hosts a carnival where Sonny and Putzie learn that, because they either never took or failed physical education, they have to take summer school with Coach Calhoun in order to get their diplomas. Kenickie approaches Rizzo and demands to talk to her, only to have her reveal she is not pregnant after all. Overjoyed, they reunite. Danny shows up wearing a Letterman's sweater and reveals he is now a letterman for the cross-country team, to the T-Birds' dismay. Danny confesses it is a decision he has made in an effort to clean up his image so that he can be together with Sandy, telling the T-Birds that they too will have to grow up and stop following people all the time. The group is subsequently stunned when Sandy appears seconds later sporting a new hairstyle, dressed in black leather, and smoking a cigarette. In song, the two admit they love each other and reunite and Sandy also tells Danny that if she was willing to change for him then it is only fair that he do the same for her by being faithful and more mature. The gang realizes that high school is now over, and worries that they'll never see each other again. Danny insists, "Nah, that'll never happen," and everyone celebrates their friendship. As the song nears its conclusion, Danny and Sandy depart in a red hot rod, which takes flight, and the pair wave goodbye to their friends. Musical numbers *"Summer Nights" - Danny, Sandy, Doody, Marty, Putzie, Kenickie, Frenchy, Betty Rizzo, Jan and Sonny *"Hopelessly Devoted to You" - Sandy *"Sandy" - Danny *"Beauty School Drop-Out" - Teen Angel *"Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee" - Betty Rizzo *"Greased Lightning" - Danny and Kenickie *"Rock 'N' Roll Is Here to Stay" - Sha-Na-Na *"Those Magic Changes" - Sha-Na-Na *"Hound Dog" - Sha-Na-Na *"Born to Hand Jive" - Sha-Na-Na *"Alma Mater" - Students *"There Are Worse Things I Could Do" - Betty Rizzo *"Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee" (reprise) - Sandy *"You're the One That I Want" - Danny and Sandy *"We Go Together" - Danny, Sandy and Students Category: Musical films